Let me tell you something about Michael Jackson’s kids.
written by DyAnne Pepper
Prince. Paris. And Bigi — Baby! Baby!(If you don’t know. Now you know) — were supposed to inherit their father’s empire. Michael Jackson left this earth in 2009 owing roughly $500 million in debt, and his estate has since turned that deficit into a $3.5 billion revenue machine. Seventeen years of catalog royalties, Broadway productions, Cirque du Soleil residencies, and a biopic in production. The King of Pop is still the King of Pop, even from the grave.
And his children are still waiting for their full inheritance.
Wait a minute — do you think he would have named the next kid after 2Pac if they didn’t have that confrontation over Quincy Jones’ daughter, Kidada?
Paris, 27 years old and apparently tired of being patient, has taken the men managing her father’s money to court. Good for her. Somebody had to.
Why Michael Jackson’s Kids Still Don’t Have Their Money
Here is the situation in plain English, because too many articles have buried it under legal jargon designed to make you feel confused and give up.
Michael Jackson left a five-page will that put everything into a family trust for his children and his mother. Simple enough. Except — nearly two decades later, that trust has never received the full inheritance because of an unresolved IRS tax dispute over the estate’s valuation. Until that number gets settled, the full distribution stays on hold. The kids receive grants from the estate’s income in the meantime, but those grants are not the same thing as their inheritance.
And while Michael Jackson’s kids wait, the estate is being run by two executors — entertainment lawyer John Branca and music executive John McClain — who have been drawing compensation from his money for going on seventeen years.
That is where Paris has a problem. And honestly? Same.
What Paris Is Actually Alleging
In November 2025, Paris filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court accusing Branca and McClain of sitting on $464 million in cash reserves that earned under 0.1 percent return. For context, a basic high-yield savings account in 2021 would have done better than that. We’re talking about nearly half a billion dollars parked somewhere earning essentially nothing while inflation quietly ate it alive.
She’s also alleging that in 2021 alone, the two executors paid themselves over $10 million in compensation — a figure that allegedly dwarfs what any of the three children received that year. The total executor compensation could be as high as $148 million, according to the filings. Meanwhile Paris’s brother Prince received about $2.1 million in distributions that period, and Bigi received about $1 million.
Branca and McClain’s people shot back that Paris has already received approximately $65 million in benefits from the estate — more than either of her brothers — and stands to inherit hundreds of millions more once the tax dispute resolves. They called her lawsuit “meritless.” They suggested her attorney was using her for his own positioning.
That last part — using Michael Jackson’s money to attack his own daughter in the press — is the part that should make everyone’s blood pressure rise.
The Biopic Is a Whole Other Level of Conflict
If the cash management allegations weren’t enough, Paris has also raised serious concerns about the upcoming Michael Jackson biopic, which Branca approved and is executive producing. In a move that would be almost funny if it weren’t about a dead man’s legacy and his children’s money, Branca cast an actor to play a fictional version of himself in the film.
The executor. Cast himself. In the biopic. About the artist whose estate he manages.
Paris also pointed out that the original script depicted allegations involving Jordan Chandler — in violation of a 1994 legal agreement that expressly forbade such depictions. The oversight reportedly led to expensive reshoots. Estate money. Gone.
These are not the complaints of a spoiled heir looking for attention. These are specific, documentable, financial concerns about how the man managing her father’s money is also benefiting personally from decisions made with that money. That is the definition of a conflict of interest.
Now — About That List of Artists Who Compare to Michael Jackson
The article that sparked this conversation asked rhetorically whether any artist compares to Michael Jackson’s career. They left the question open, floating in the air, as if the answer were too large to fit on the page.
It isn’t. The list fits right here:
Prince. Beyoncé. Madonna. Elvis. The Beatles. Taylor Swift. Maybe Stevie Wonder if we’re talking pure catalog and cultural weight.
That’s it. Seven names. Plenty of space in the article to print every one of them. FOH with the rhetorical questions.
The man contained multitudes. His kids are fighting for his legacy, and the people managing his money never really knew him. They knew the catalog. Paris did.
What This Looks Like From Here
There is a long history of Black wealth being managed by people who do not share in the consequences of their decisions. There is a long history of Black women being characterized as difficult, emotional, or lawyer-driven when they ask hard questions about money they are owed.
Paris is being called all of those things right now.
She filed court documents saying this litigation is painful. That she would rather it not exist. That she would prefer no press coverage. These are not the words of someone chasing a spotlight. These are the words of someone who tried everything else first and is now doing the only thing left.
Her brothers are quiet. Paris is the one standing in the courtroom.
Whatever you think about the Jackson family — and there is a lot to think about — Michael Jackson’s kids deserve a basic thing: if someone is managing your money, they should be able to account for where it went. That is not radical. That is just accountability.
The man made “Thriller.” He made “Off the Wall.” He made “Bad.” He sold over 400 million albums. His estate has generated billions in the seventeen years since his death.
His children deserve to know what happened to every dollar of it. See why Thriller is not the Ultimate Black Album
DyAnne Pepper covers culture, entertainment, and the art of living well at the-afrofuturist.com. If you think Paris is right to fight, leave a comment. If you don’t, DyAnne wants to hear that argument too.
